PHOTO: Mr. Mulbah presenting the assorted office equipment to Deputy Minister Fagans on behalf of CI
Environmental nonprofit Conservation International handed over US$ 10,000 worth of assorted office equipment to the Ministry of Agriculture on Tuesday, to strengthen monitoring of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the agriculture sector and boost Liberia’s efforts to tackle climate change.
The items donated included laptop and desktop computers, photocopier, office chairs, projector, office desk, among others. The equipment was procured with funding from the Global Environment Facility (GEF) under the Capacity-building Initiative for Transparency (CBIT) Project.
The CBIT Project, which seeks to build and strengthen Liberia’s national capacity to measure, track and report activities related to addressing climate change, is implemented by Conservation International and the Environmental Protection Agency of Liberia (EPA).
Presenting the office supplies to the Deputy Minister for Planning and Development at the Ministry of Agriculture at the Ministerial Complex in Congo Town, Conservation International Liberia Country Director, Peter G. Mulbah said the equipment will enable the technical personnel trained under the project to do their work effectively.
“The agriculture sector now has the equipment and trained personnel to collect and manage GHG data in compliance with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and national reporting requirements,” he said.
He added: “GHG data from the agriculture sector feeds into the national GHG inventory that aggregates data from other key sectors such as land use, energy, transport and waste sectors.”
Receiving the items on behalf of the Ministry of Agriculture, Deputy Agriculture Minister for Planning and Development, Robert K. Fagans Sr., lauded Conservation International and GEF for the donation and said the support will help enhance the work of the ministry. He assured that the donation will be used for the intended purpose.
The CBIT project consists of three components including strengthening the capacity of national institutions to track implementation of Liberia’s commitments to tackle change. It involves provision of technical support to harmonize collection and reporting of GHG data from key economic sectors and the integration of platform for data sharing and policy making.
Liberia ratified the Paris Agreement in which the “Enhanced Transparency Framework” was established to help understand, compare, harmonize and track national and global commitments in fighting climate change.
Although Liberia produces a negligible share of the global GHG emissions, it has committed to 10% emissions cut by 2030 under its current plan, technically called Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC). An updated NDC is expected to be unveiled soon.